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THE SONG MACHINE

A captivating story of creativity and commerce that explains how songs have become so addictive.

Over the last two decades a new type of song has emerged. Today’s hits bristle with “hooks,” musical burrs designed to snag your ear every seven seconds. Painstakingly crafted to tweak the brain’s delight in melody, rhythm, and repetition, these songs are highly engineered experiences designed for malls, casinos, the gym, and the Super Bowl halftime show. Traveling from New York to Los Angeles, Stockholm to Korea, John Seabrook tells a story of what happens when an industry is catastrophically disrupted—spurring innovation, competition, intense greed, and seductive new products. One of the most memorable, scandalous, and deliciously entertaining books of the year, The Song Machine will change the way you listen to music.